Exxon pressured gov’t for speedy signing

the negotiations and most of its documents were what were submitted by Minister Raphael Trotman. The report said that it seems likely that ExxonMobil pressed the MoNR to get the new agreement signed prior to formally announcing the result of the Liza-2 well.

“EEPGL may well have feared a change in approach to the negotiations by the Government after the announcement of a “world class” discovery as a result of the Liza-2 well,” it said.

The report raises questions on whether the party that wins the March 2nd 2020 General and Regional Elections will use it as evidence to push for a renegotiation of the 2016 PSA, even though it did not give a recommendation in this regard.

It reminded that the 1999 Agreement and the 1999 License were due to expire in June 2018 and that ExxonMobil had already renewed it for the maximum two times allowed under the Act and that they wanted an extension. It was also noted that ExxonMobil had two months before the 2015 general elections requested that the contract be renewed to give them more exploration time to June 2018.

The report also pointed out that in 2014, four years prior to the expiry of the 1999 agreement, the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) understood that ExxonMobil would not have been in a position to complete all the planned exploration works. However, it does not state if it verified that information with the past government. It said that that its team travelled to Guyana in October of last year and January of this year and interviewed Trotman, GGMC Head Newell Dennison, MoNR Attorney Joanna Simmons Homer and GGMC staffer Christopher Lynch, who had accompanied Dennison to Texas, and former Minister of Foreign Affairs Carl Greenidge.

“We were informed that there were discussions about how to grant the Contractor Consortium further time for exploration operations as early as 2014 in a way which would not cause disruption to the ongoing exploration activities,” it said.

“In March 2015, EEPGL applied to renew the 1999 Licence for the period from 14 June 2015 to the 14 June 2018. EEPGL also requested on 15 April 2015 that the requirement to relinquish twenty five per cent (25%) of the Stabroek Block upon renewal of the 1999 Licence be waived. We did not see any documents confirming that these requests were approved but were told that approval for the renewal without relinquishment was given,” the report stated.

The MoNR and the government, Clyde and Co noted, concluded that a strategic relationship with the Contractor Consortium would be important to the development of oil and gas here and was also of particular strategic significance in light of the ongoing territorial controversy with Venezuela.

“The MoNR and the Government desired that (i) the Contractor Consortium complete the exploration activities such that the full extent of the then evident resources could be identified and later realised; and (ii) EEPGL and CNOOC, as members of the Contractor Consortium continue to act as a deterrent to Venezuela and as a check against the ambitions of Venezuela’s government. Both the MoNR and GGMC had considered various alternative solutions, including expedited exploration. The MoNR in consultation with the Government as a whole reached the conclusion that the best approach would be to enter into a new petroleum agreement and petroleum prospecting licence with the Contractor Consortium,” the report said.

“The procedures followed by the GGMC, the MoNR and the Government reflected the strategic importance placed on ensuring operations on the Stabroek Block continued without interruption and with the Contractor Consortium. Negotiations of the detailed terms of 2016 Agreement were elevated to the MoNR for this reason. Both the MoNR and GGMC made efforts to negotiate the terms of the 2016 Agreement and improve its terms. Notwithstanding their efforts, the Contractor Consortium was not receptive to the amendments proposed. It objected to most of the MoNR’s and GGMC’s proposals,” it added.

On 5 March 2015, ExxonMobil began drilling at Liza 1. On 7 May 2015, the [then] Minister of Natural Resources Robert Persaud, the report said, announced that the Contractor Consortium had struck oil from the well.

Noted too was that on May 11th of 2015, a new government of Guyana was elected following the general elections and 13 days later, on 20 May 2015, EEPGL announced the Liza 1 discovery. The re lat de eig

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